Consider this a test for long-term couples who appreciate the horror genre: Sit down with your partner and stream Together. The independent film success of 2025 just made its launch on a streaming platform on the Hulu service. On the surface, it could look like standard body horror, but inside Together resides a intense examination about our choices in loving our partners.
An Introductory Film Investigating Relationship Dynamics
Together is the introductory feature for director Michael Shanks. It showcases actors Alison Brie and Dave Franco as Millie and Tim, partners that have remained a couple for over ten years. Having wed in actuality in 2017, Franco and Brie bring a special spark to their roles, expertly portraying both the joys and frustrations of a committed partnership.
The narrative begins when the couple relocate from the urban environment to the countryside for professional reasons. A commonly used plot device, of course, but that’s mostly where the conventions cease. Together evolves into as much a psychological exploration of the couple's dynamic as it is a body horror flick.
A Paranormal Spark
While hiking near their rural residence, a storm hits, and Millie and Tim fall into an underground cave. After a night spent there and finally finding a way out, a mysterious influence takes hold of the duo. This force creates a paranormal intimacy between them that goes far beyond emotional intimacy.
The complete narrative is a methodically building fright fest, weaving in elements of hallucinatory nightmares, unsettling (but never too gross) physical transformations, and surprisingly comedic exchanges (sometimes amidst something horrific). The director skillfully blends these components seamlessly and delivers them in a gradually swelling sense of impending doom.
Nuanced Portrayals
A significant portion of Together is only the performances of its stars, and they deftly portray numerous complexities to the partnership at the film's core. Millie's sense of self and feeling of intimacy is deteriorating due to a emotional and physical gap. Her subconscious resentment of Tim for his unwillingness to pursue anything but his floundering music career gradually emerges.
Conversely, Tim senses confinement and separated by Millie, who’s the impetus they’ve left the city and removed from his support system. He dreads the idea of completely losing his personal autonomy in another person. This fear is further exacerbated by the reality he does not operate a vehicle and relies on Millie for getting around.
Shanks’ smartest move in Together never makes one partner or the other the clear bad guy.
Both characters face the sort of issues that come with any relationship over a long period. At their core, they have affection for each other. They share moments of joy, offer support, and share intimately at times. But beneath it all, there’s an persistent current of uncertainty about their future together.
Thematic Depth
While the otherworldly presence in Together symbolize these fears of codependency and fully committing to another person, the allegory never feels clumsy or heavy-handed. Instead, these visceral horror elements provide a ideal counterpart to the relationship narrative. Both the frights and the fights enhance each other symbiotically.
A Controversial Conclusion
Together’s conclusion, which remains unspoiled, has sparked debate on the story's concluding statement about codependent relationships. Reports indicate that those not in relationships have understood the narrative as a powerful case for remaining unattached. On the other hand, certain partners experiencing tension found that the film actually helped them resolve their issues.
Whether you’re single or coupled up, your own interpretation could act as a revealing measure of how you view relationships. Will the conclusion inspire feelings of uneasiness and dread, or a heartwarming sense of hope? Will you recognize your own traits in Tim or Millie and feel frustration, or simply look at your partner and say, “We could get through that together”?
Whatever the case may be, Together is an test you can embark on right now.
Together is available to watch on Hulu as of this moment.
